Sealing construction for plug valves



July 21, 1953 L. s. HAMER 2,646,247

' SEALING CONSTRUCTION FQR PLUG vALvEs Filed Feb. 28, 1947 2 Sheets-Shee't 1 lo I jpg y so V 55 i 5| 45 14 4l F' 4o 44 fa4 7 42 E c ne I8 i D 24 E 26i25; 2o

5' '5 firme/v51 July 21, 1953 s. HAMER SEALING CONSTRUCTION FOR PLUG VALVES 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Feb. 28, 1947 Patented July 21, 1953 `Leland S. Hamer,.Long Beach, Calif., assigner of one-fourth to Paul-A. Dewhirst, Los Angeles,

Calif.

Application February 28, 1947, Serial No. 731,522

"This invention has to do with' sealing construction for plug valves it`being a general object of the Vinvention lto lprovide va simplied, improved, effective construction whereby ra plug valve 'is sealedto effectively handle high pressures.

the `plug type are desirable 'and it has been .found advantageous to'seal such devices with grease or V'the like to preventr or to minimize leakage.

Arrangements heretofore provided for sealing plug Y valves with grease or the likehave presented certaink difficulties and disadvantages and 'the Ire-r where the flow passage in the body intersects they plug,V whichbodies of sealing materialare separated. In the preferred'fform of my inventionl provide check valves" that separateY the bodies of sealing material. i

zclams. (o1. 251-93) There are various situations Where'valves of v Fig. 6. Fig. A8v is a View similar to Fig. 7 showing the parts in a different rotative position. Fig. 9 is a plan section taken as indicated by line -9-9- on Fig. 6, and Fig. 10 is a plan section taken as Vindicated by line Ill-I0 on Fig. 6.

The constructionV that I have provided is applicable, generally, to plug lvalves and in the drawings I have shown it as applied to tapered plug valves,l which type ofv valve is one commonly used. Referring to the form of the invention illustrated in Figs'. 1 to 5, inclusive, the Valve includes, gen'l f erally, a bodyl A, a plug B, a stem'C vprojecting flinotherlobject of the present invention is to provide a structure of thei general'character referred to wherein thereis a single'pressure cham-4 ,ber carryingr a supply of sealing material which islfed through the checky valves to the'pointsv to besealed. In accordance'with my preferred con-- struction the pressure chamber' occursbetween one end of` the plug and thev ycap Which'retains the plug in place inthe body. f

I t is a further object of Ymy invention Ato provide a plug vvalve construction `of "the general character/ referred to Vincluding a single feed kmeans wherebysealing materiali is fed to a pressure chamber from which itpasses to individual sealing areas whichr are separatecl'byvvalves.y

The various objectsand features of my invention will Ybefully f understood Afrom the 'following detailed description' Aof ytypical preferred forms .and applications of the invention, throughout Which-description reference is made to Vthe accompanying drawings, inwhich:

Fig. 1 is a vertical sectional'view showing the*V principal or working parts ofthe structure that I'have provided. Fig. 2fis a'transverse sectionalV view being a View taken as indicated by line 2-2 on-Fig. =1. Fig. 3 is an enlarged detailed sectional viewof a portion of the structureshown in a plan section taken as indicated by line'l-l on Y passage I2;

the passage I2 is a round passage uniform in size from the plug through a cap D on the body, operating means Ei provided for rotating the plug, and. operating meansF provided for shifting the plug axially.V

The body of the; valve includes an enlarged central portion Il) and projecting end portions i I that extend from opposite sides of the enlarged portion 'IDI' In accordance with rcommon valve construction la fluid passage I2 extends through the body froml the outer end of one end part Ilv to the outerrendV of the other'end part II vand a plug opening i3`enters the enlarged portion I0, preferably from its upper end to intersect the In the particular valve yillustrated throughout its length and the rend parts vII are provided with connecting flanges' Ill. i The plugopening I3 provided in thebody is a tapered opening extending downwardly inthe env larged body'portion Il) Well past the passage I2 or to the lower end portion of the body which is closed by `a bottom wall`A Ii.- 'The upper end of the opening I3 provided in the body is closed by 'flange i3 overlying the upper end of body I and suitable fastening devices or screw members I9 releasably connect the cap to the body. In accordance ywith the preferred form of the invention a packing member 20 is' provided between the cap rand the counterbore Il to check escape of fluid'betweenthe cap and the body.

The plug B lis ra simple, tapered plug tapered to #correspond to the opening` I3 so that it fits in the opening in the v:manner illustrated throughout the drawings. A ho'1e`2I is provided transversely throughthe plug which hole is preferably the same size and shape as passage I2 and is so located that it can be moved into and out of register with the passage I2 by suitable rotation of the plug in the body. In accordance with my present invention the upper or large end -22 of I6 of cap D is counterbored at 26 to carry packing.

21 that serves to seal against escape of fluid upwardly around the stem.

The means E provided for rotating the plug may be a head 3B held on a polygonal portion 3| of the stem by a suitable nut 32. The head is provided with openings 33 to receive bars or yother tools Y whereby the plug may be rotated.

The means F is provided for shifting the plug axially and in the form of the invention illustrated it is in the form of a nut carried on the stem C between a downwardly facing part 4| of the head 30 and an upwardly facing shoulder 42 on the stem. The nut is threaded into the cap D at 44 so that when the nut is rotated as by engaging a f suitable bar or tool in one of the openings 45 the plug is moved up Vor down depending upon the direction of rotation of the nut.

The sealing construction that I have provided involves, generally, means 56 by which sealing material is introduced into the chamber 24, channels 5| in the plug structure carrying bodies of sealing material to surround the ends of passage I2 intersecting plug opening I3 when the plug is positioned so that its hole 2| is transverse of passage I2, and individual means 54 by which sealing material is supplied from the chamber 24 to the channels 5|.

The means 5D is preferably a single tting provided on the exterior of the body A to facilitate introduction of sealing material to the chamber 24 through a suitable port `BIJ. In the particular case illustrated the fitting 5G has an inner end portion 6| threaded into the enlarged outer end portion of port 6i) and it has an enlarged outer end portion 62 provided with a chamber |52a in which a check valve 63 is mounted. A suitable grease tting 66 is provided in connection with the enlarged portion S2 of the fitting. With the structure just described a suitable grease gun such as is ordinarily employed for applying lubricant may be applied to the grease fitting 6B to introduce lubricant or sealing material past valve 63 so it passes through port 6|! into pressure chamber 24.

In the form of the invention illustrated in Figs. b

1 to 5, inclusive, the channels 5| are located or formed in the plug D and since the hole 2| through the plug opens at diametrically opposite sides of the plug, the two channels are located at they may be varied widely in location and size,

as circumstances may require.

The means 54 that I have provided serves to individually connect the two channels 5| with the common pressure chamber 24. In accordance with the preferred form of my invention there is .from the pressure chamber `24 tothe port 'l0 that positively prevents return flow from port 'I0 to chamber 24 so there can be no communication of pressure from one channel 5| to the other. In the case illustrated each check valve involves a simple fitting 'I2 threaded into the end of port 10 at the upper end of the plug and a ball valve 'I3 is carried by the fitting to cooperate with a seat in the tting to gain the desired valve action.

In practice I may use any desired sealing material in the structure I have provided. For example, for many classes of service I may use a heavy grease or the like. In any event the material to be employed as the sealing material or sealing medium is introduced through the single tting 5D to fill the pressure chamber 24. From the pressure chamber 24 the sealing material passes through the individual check valves of the means 54 andis fed by the ports 10 into the channels 5| so that it fills the channels 5I. The channels 5I lled with sealing material establish a continuous seal around points where the passage I2 intersects'the plug opening |3 when the plug is closed, as shownin Fig. 1, so that the hole through the plug is transverse of the passage I2. By providing channels 5| at opposite sides of the plug and by providing the two means 54, one for each channel, I provide two seals and thus effectively prevent leakage when the plug is in the closed position. It is to be noted that the packings 20 and 21 sealing the cap in the body and the stem in the cap are so located that the sealing material under pressure in chamber 24 acts on them to maintain them tightly engaged or sealed.

In accordance with the preferred form of my invention I provide stop means between the body and plug to limit rotation of the plug in the body. In the drawings I have shown a stop pin I5A carried by the bottom I5 of body part Il) tov project upwardly into a channel 'I6 provided in the lower or small end of the plug. The stop pin 'l5 cooperates with the ends of the channel 'I6 in stopping the plug and the parts are preferably arranged and related so that the plug is stopped in position where its hole 2| is transverse offpassage I2 and is also stopped in a positionV where its hole 2| is in alignment with the passage.

I2. It will be understood that the plug is freely rotatable between the stopped positions and it will be apparent how it can be freed for rotation by moving it axially through operation of means F, if necessary. Furthermore, it will be apparent that the plug may be seated tightly in the opening I3 by operation of means F if necessary.

In the preferred form of my invention the lower end of the plug is spaced somewhat from the bottom I5 of the body leaving a chamber 8| at the lower end of the plug that is maintained in communication with the pressure chamber 24 by one or more ports S2 extending longitudinally through the plug between-its ends. Through this construction material supplied to the pressure chamber through the means 5U is conducted by port 82 to the chamber 8| with the result that a body of sealing material is maintained in the chamber 8|.

. the body or in the wall of opening I3@ Yand the ports 'Hla of means 54a instead of conducting sealing material to channels in the plug conduct such material to the channels 5Ia in The channels 5w have longitudinally or axially disposed portions X' with their ends joined by circumferential portions Y', the portions X and Y forming continuous openings or channels around the points where Athe passage l2 communicates with opening 13a. Theports 'IllEL communicate with the luppermost circumferential portions Y and the said uppermost portions Y are of sufficient circumferential extent so that the ports '10E are in communication with the said upper portion Y of the channels at all times,

that is, when the valve is open and also when the valvev is closed. This relationship of parts is clearly illustrated in Figs. 'T and 8 of the drawings.v l

In this form of the invention, as in the form first described, I provide a stop pin 15 operating in a channel 16 in the lower end of the plug to limit rotation of the plug, and I provide a port 82 in the plug extending from one end to the vother so sealing material is conducted from the pressure chamber 24 at the upper end of the plug to the chamber 81| at the lower end of the plug. It is'to be understood that the means 5l!a that I have shown in Figs. 6 to 10 includes fittings 12 carrying check valves the same as the fittings shown in Fig. 4 of the drawings, so that the channels 5Ia are separated by the Vvalves s0 that pressure is not communicated'between the channels, although both channels are supplied or fed with sealing material from the common pressure chamber 24 supplied through of the structure.

Having described only typical preferred forms and application of my invention, I do not wish tov be limited or restricted to the specific details herein set forth, but wish to reserve to myself any variations or modifications that may appear to those skilled in the art and fall within the scope of the following claims.

Having described my invention, I claim:

1. A plug valve including, two elements, one a body having an elongate portion with a iiow passage extending longitudinally therethrough and having a lateral projection on said portion, there being an opening through said projection and intersecting the passage, the other-,element being a plug in the said opening and rotatably engaged with the portion of the first mentioned element where the said passage and said opening intersect, the plug having a transverse hole through it adapted to be movedA into'and out of register with the passage by rotation of the plug relative to the body and having a stem project-v ing through the said opening to the exterior ofv the body, a unitary capron said lateralprojection and surrounding the stem, the cap having an upper portion with an aperture passing the stem, the stem being rotatably engaged in the portion of the cap defining the said aperture therein, the cap having a lower POIIOI! With an .a single means 50 accessible from the exterior .f Number Name Date 2,011,113 Neuhaus Aug. 13, 1935' 2,026,891 Haun Jan. '7, 1936 2,039,523 Dopp May 5, 1936 2,041,669 Whittle K Mayv 19, 1936 2,066,250 Clark Dec. 29, 1936 2,229,932 Parker Jan. 28, 1941 2,307,443 Atkinson et al. Jan. 5, 1943 A2,319,943 Nordstrom May 25, 1943 2,322,379 Moorehead June 22, 1943 2,360,599 Volpin Oct. 17, 1944 2,421,879 Hamer June 10, 1947 annular chamber surrounding the stem and in communication at the bottom of the cap with the said opening, fluid pressure actuated sealing means supported by the cap in the said annular chamber and having sealing engagement with the stem and cap andA adapted to be'operated by t 'ing material to engage and seal between the body and plug, the channels being in communication with the annular chamber, and a supply means connected with thechamber and adapted to supply sealing fluid thereto.

2. A plugvalve including, a body having an elongate portion with a ow passage extending longitudinally therethrough and having a lateral projection," there being an opening extending through the projection and intersecting the passage, a plug in the said opening and rotatably engaged with the body and having a hole therethrough adapted to be Vmoved into and out of register with the passage by rotation of the plug relative to the body, a stem concentric with and projecting from the upper end 'of the plug, a unitary cap mounted on the projection of the body at the outermost end of the said opening,

the cap having an upper portion rotatably carry-A v ing the stein and having a lower portion extend'- l the last mentioned chamber engaging the cap and the body and adapted to be operated by fluid from the said opening to seal between the cap and body, vsealing means in the first mentioned chamber engaging the stem and cap and adapted to be operated by fluid from the said opening, there being channels between the 'plug and body where the plug and body are engaged and extending around the flow passage in the body when the hole in the plug is out of register with the passage in the body, the saidchannels being adapted to carry sealing material to engage and seal with the plug and body, the channels being in communication with said opening, and'supply means connected with the said opening and adapted to supply sealing material thereto for passage therefrom to the channels.

y LELAND S. I-IAMER..

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

